Note: In a career context, all numbers are restricted between 0 and 5. However, in a match context, the numbers are not restricted. For simplicity, we are changing the scale here in the report and expressing every Match Impact number as a percentage. The maximum percentage (100) is assigned to the highest impact player of the match. All other players in the match are scaled relative to him. Negative Match Impact indicates that not only did the player not contribute in the match, but he also had an adverse effect on his team’s chances.​​

R​oyal Challengers Bangalore ​defeated table-toppers Gujarat Lions by four wickets in a closely-fought qualifier in Bangalore on Tuesday (24 May).

​AB de Villiers was the highest impact player, and batsman, of the match for his unbeaten 47-ball-79.

de Villiers strode out to bat following Virat Kohli’s cheap dismissal (at 12 for 1) and watched on as RCB kept losing wickets (25 for 2 soon became 29 for 5). He absorbed all that pressure, built partnerships and successfully navigated the chase, scoring almost 50% of the target in the process.

It was the third-highest impact performance of his T20 career but crucially, his highest impact performance in a knockout match.

Dhawal Kulkarni was the highest impact bowler for his pressure-building four top/middle-order wickets in the evening’s most restrictive spell (4-14 off four overs). Albeit in vain, it was the highest impact bowling performance of his T20 career.

Interestingly, two of the highest impact players tonight finished on the losing side.

Based on the performances of both teams, Royal Challengers Bangalore had a 11% higher impact than Gujarat Lions in the match. Six players from GL failed in the match. RCB, in comparison, had five such players.